Ground Zero

Everything was chaos and pandemonium at New Foundation HQ. Jess pulled KARR to a complete stop, surveying the area. "Where is everyone?" she demanded.

Carson appeared in the backseat. He leaned in between the seats and pointed through the windshield. "Raven is that way. She's standing in between FLAG mercenaries and the garage. My bet is she's covering for Kitson and Heather. They're in there – probably arming themselves, knowing Heather. Borden and Drake are by the armory. They're using the warehouses as a maze to circle back around on their attackers. I don't know where Banachek is, and the medic is hiding in the clinic, the cursed coward that he is." Jess snickered at that.

"Where's Chris?" she asked.

"He's in the armory with a few other of the mechanics, keeping everyone else in ammo from the looks of it." Carson said. "Your boyfriend is resourceful."

"Thank you. I think."

"Where did you come from?" Bonnie demanded.

"I've been here the whole time." Carson said blandly. "I opened the door for you. Didn't you see me?" Bonnie simply shook her head and looked around. Jess reached over her and opened the glove compartment. She drew a gun – a snubnosed revolver – and glanced back at Carson. He nodded. "Don't worry. I'll keep her safe. Get to the others." She nodded and quickly opened the driver's door and took off, keeping her head low. KARR had to admit, paintball tournaments had kept her light on her feet. She was using the same techniques she used in her little tournaments.

Bonnie's face was pale. "This would break Devon's heart." she murmured. "FLAG was never supposed to be a violent agency. We were trying to help people, not hurt them."

Carson snorted in contempt. That wasn't the Devon Miles he knew. "FLAG has changed." he said blandly. "It is only obvious that New Foundation should do the same." He reached over to the dash and pressed a button. It was only for show, but the last thing he wanted was Bonnie Barstow thinking that he was an AI. "Raven, Jess is coming in. She's making her way across the lot. Do you see her?"

"I see her." Raven replied, her voice tight. "Man, I hope Chris hurries up. I'm not doing much with this little thing."

"How about this?" KARR recognized Heather's voice immediately. He honed in on them, and almost groaned when he saw what Heather had. Jess and Raven still had a tendency to use big guns with lots of ammo for big jobs. Heather preferred the one well-placed bullet for each target method with a smaller gun. Raven was now holding an AK-47. Heather had a .45 Sig. Easier to handle for her, but Raven liked the statement the bigger guns made. Carson shook his head.

"For the love of all things holy, be careful." he warned.

Raven laughed. "Aren't we always?"

Carson flicked off the comm. link. "I hate it when they do that." he muttered. At Bonnie's look, he continued, "Apparently, Banachek hired a bunch of sadists when he hired the sisters."

"Are they all named Knight?" Bonnie asked. Carson shrugged noncommittally. She gave him a hard glare. "Hey, I'm caught in the crossfire too. I have a right to know –" At that moment a rocket broadsided the parked vehicle, sending it rolling a few feet before it finally righted itself. Carson quickly slid into the driver's seat, ignoring the disoriented Bonnie. Lucky – or perhaps unlucky – that she was still wearing her seat belt. KARR would have loved to see her go flying. KARR sent dirt flying as he picked up speed, trying to get out of the rocket launcher's path. Bonnie struggled to hold on. "What's happening?

"Mortars." Carson grunted. "Kitson, where are you?"

"In the garage." KITT replied, thankfully using what the girls had affectionately termed his human voice as opposed to the normal, electronically tinged voice that Bonnie was sure to recognize. "I'll be right out. Although you might want to know – the scanners indicate the rocket launcher is a safe couple miles away from the perimeter. We aren't getting to it."

"Want to make a bet?" Carson grunted, swerving to avoid yet another rocket. He cursed. "This is stupid. I'm heading away from the garage."

"It's safest in here."

"Yes, and I'll draw their fire to the girls." Carson snapped. "No. I'll take my chances."

Bonnie held on. She had no other choice.

/----/

Heather quickly slid another clip into the Sig and resumed fire. "Have I mentioned I hate firefights?" she asked Raven in a conversational tone. Raven grunted as she resumed her fight – simply spraying everyone in sight with a deadly rain of bullets.

"Once or twice." she said.

"Can I say it again?"

"Will it make you feel better?

"Yes."

"Go ahead."

Heather squeezed off a few rounds, taking out the four men who were trying to sneak up on her blind side. "I hate firefights." Another three rounds, and three more people dropped to the ground. "Honestly, where do they get these guys? They're nothing but cannon fodder."

"Say what?" Raven cast her a confused look, never taking her focus from the battle.

"I'll explain later." She glanced up, and froze. "KITT! The chopper – that has to be how they're coordinating this!"

"How did you hear that over the gunfire?!" Raven demanded.

"I didn't. I looked up."

"I see it." KITT said. "You guys should move – one to either side of the doorway, please. I'm going to take it down." The girls quickly moved to where KITT wanted them, and a split second later, KITT's laser fired. A red beam shot out from the grillwork and sheared off one of the propellers. The chopper spun in a deadly tumble to the ground. The explosion was probably a sight to see, but the girls had their focus on the minions of FLAG that had been surrounding them.

They were retreating.

"What do we do?" Raven wondered. "Just let them go?"

Heather hesitated. She had always been taught not to press a fight she'd already won, especially by her sensei, but this once it might get their point across.

Then she noticed the NF guards giving chase. "No need." she said, holstering her weapon. "Let them have their fun."

Raven grinned. "No problem." She shifted the weight of her gun and winced when the movement aggravated the wound in her upper arm. She'd taken a bullet earlier in the battle – a glancing blow, really – but Heather and Kitson had bandaged it up to the best of their ability. She had been able to defend herself.

Kitson and Jess appeared by their sides. Blood was smeared across Jess's side, probably another near miss. She was breathing heavily. "Are you guys all right?"

"Am I the only one who didn't get hurt?" Heather demanded.

"Uh – check your arm." Raven said with a laugh.

Heather looked down. Shrapnel from one near-miss with a grenade had shredded the skin on her upper arm. She hadn't even noticed. "Well, heck. Looks like we're all visiting the infirmary."

/---/

An: Okay, I'm stopping there. This thing is taking on a life of its own.